LOCAL/STATE
The Michigan Daily - Friday, November 30, 2001- 3
Intoxicated man
attempts to flee
police in neutral
Police spotted a man standing in
the middle of Fuller Road at approx-
imately 3 a.m. Tuesday, according to
Department of Public Safety
reports.
The man was standing outside of
his car and upon spotting police got
in his vehicle and attempted to drive
away. He was unable to leave the
scene because his car was in neu-
tral.
Police detained the man and discov-
ered he had a blood alcohol count of
.20 percent. A person with a .10 per-
cent BAC is considered legally intoxi-
cated. His passenger was also
intoxicated. The man and his passen-
ger, both 21 years old, had been drink-
ing at a fraternity.
The man was arrested for operating
.a vehicle under the influence of alco-
hol.
Counterfeit football
tickets purchased
Police discovered 25 tickets
received by Michigan Stadium
staff Saturday for Michigan's foot-
ball game against Ohio State were
counterfeit, according to DPS
reports.
Investigators believe most of the
counterfeit tickets were sold along
State Street and the Interstate 94
area.
PlayStation 2
stolen from dorm
Two students said a PlayStation 2
and several other items were stolen
from their West Quad Residence Hall
dorm room Wednesday evening,
according to DPS reports. The victims
told police they only lock their door
when they leave the building.
DPS had no suspects.
Trash can fire
causes students
to evacuate
A fire in a West Quad Residence
Hall trash closet Wednesday night
forced residents to evacuate the build-
ing, DPS reports state. Police discov-
ered trash on the shelf of a closet had
caught fire. A bulletin board was
burned, but there were no injuries.
Students were able to return once
Occupational Safety and Environmen-
tal Health officials arrived to assist
police.
DPS did not find any evidence of
carbon monoxide.
Skateboarder's
safety concerns
pedestrian
A man walking on the third level of
the Church Street parking garage
Wednesday afternoon said he saw a
person on a skateboard "jumping over
things," DPS reports state. He was
S afraid the skateboarder would be hit by
a car.
Female robbery
suspect on loose
A woman between the ages of 18
and 22 is wanted by the Ann Arbor
Police for two robberies. The sus-
pect, who has purple hair with a
blond streak, robbed a woman of
her purse using a box cutter Friday
in the 700 block of Packard Road.
The suspect also robbed another
woman in the 700 block of East
University Avenue Sunday with the
help of two men.
The suspect is approximately 5
feet tall and 120 pounds. She has
bright blue eyes and wears heavy
makeup.
Rocks thrown at
building
A staff member at the College of
Pharmacy said an unknown person
was throwing rocks at the Church
Street entrance of the building
Wednesday morning, DPS reports
state. Police found there was no dam-
age to the south side entrance glass
upon inspection.
- Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter
Jacquelyn Nixon.
Thomas favored to lead House Democrats
By Louie Meizlish
Daily Staff Reporter
Democrats in the state House of Represen-
tatives are expected to hold a rare mid-ses-
sion leadership election Tuesday to replace
Minority Leader Kwame Kilpatrick. Kil-
patrick is resigning at the end of the year to
become mayor of Detroit.
The minority leader's job is generally to
serve as the leader of "the loyal opposition,"
but also to help deliver that party a majority
of seats in the next election, said Bill Rustem
of the Lansing think tank Public Sector Con-
sultants.
The favorite to win the election, Rep. Buzz
Thomas of Detroit, will not be a House mem-
ber after the 2002 elections. He is term-limit-
ed after this session and will be running for
the state Senate in 2002.
There are two other candidates still in the
running - Reps. Jack Minore of Flint and
Doug Bovin of the Upper Peninsula's Glad-
stone.
Thomas, a former congressional aide and
homebuilder, has been endorsed by the
Michigan Legislative Black Caucus, which
consists of 19 House members.
Minore, a former Flint school teacher and
city council member, has emphasized in tele-
vision interviews that he, unlike Thomas,
will be seeking re-election to the House. He
can run for one more term before being term
limited.
"I have a laser-like focus on the House
Democratic Caucus," he said. "Representa-
tive Thomas, I think, has a problem with
dividing his time between running for the
Senate and leading the House caucus."
Minore praised Kilpatrick's ability to coop-
erate with House Republicans on many issues
in the past year, but said he would be more
vocal in opposition than Kilpatrick.
Democrats need to "outline the key and
core differences between Democrats and
Republicans" in an election year, he said.
Bovin, stressed his experience in various
leadership posts, including his three years as
assistant minority leader and as the former
mayor of Gladstone. He also served as presi-
dent of the National Association of Counties.
"My whole background has been involved
in leadership," he said.
Bovin said he wants the caucus to be treat-
ed more as an association because of term-
limits as well as giving more
decision-making power to the assistant lead-
ers.
But he acknowledged that being from the
Upper Peninsula is a disadvantage because
caucus members from that area have a harder
time making it to party-building meetings.
Ann Arbor Rep. Chris Kolb has endorsed
Thomas.
"Buzz is the strongest candidate to take us
into the next session based on his legislative
ability, policy abilities and his ability to
strengthen the caucus based through
fundraising and strategy," he said.
Minore, like Thomas, has potential future
factors working against him. Fellow Flint res-
ident Bob Emerson is expected to be Senate
Democratic leader after 2002, and some rep-
resentatives have reportedly been wary of
having both leaders from the same city.
Rep. John Hansen of Dexter, however,
emphasized that Emerson and Minore have
been friends for 25 years, which he said
could be beneficial in forging a beneficial
relationship between the House and Senate.
"I think that would be an advantage we'd
have them" as leaders, he said.
Hansen said it is possible that a currently
undeclared candidate could win the top lead-
ership post.
"You never know what's going to happen in
a caucus room when people start debating
and cutting deals," Hansen said.
'U'
researchers develop crash warning system
By Lisa Hoffman
Daily Staff Reporter
A device that would attempt to increase
automobile safety by emitting an audible sig-
nal when a driver is in a potentially dangerous
situation may sound good in theory, but not all
shoulder-hugging drivers are sure it is some-
thing they would appreciate.
"I can see if you're crossing into an oncom-
ing lane, but it would bother me because I do
hug the side of the road," said LSA sopho-
more Lacey Babcock. Babcock added that she
feels the new system will greatly benefit safe-
ty on the roads.
Researchers at the University's Transporta-
tion Research Institute are developing such a
device, called the Road Departure Crash
Warning System.
The system's developers said they hope to
lessen the number of off-road accidents by
warning drivers of hazardous situations before
they occur. These types of accidents account
for 41 percent of all in-vehicle fatalities.
"People need to recognize that road depar-
tures claim a bigger toll on life and property"
than any other vehicle accidents, said project
director and Traffic Institute engineer Robert
Ervin. "The details of the design are there to
satisfy the function. They haven't existed
before and are a synthesis of several elements."
The system features video cameras and
radar that will assess obstructions and possi-
ble hazards in front of the car and on the
roadside, including guard rails, parked cars
and potholes. It will also contain digital maps
of U.S. roads and a Global Positioning Satel-
lite system.
"As the vehicle goes down the road, the
road system will consult the center and ask
what the nature of the hazard is. We want the
"We want to make
driving safer and more
convenient for the
American popuIation."
- Barry Kantowicz
Director, University Traffic Institute
risk of the car departing from the road.
Traffic Institute Director Barry Kantowitz
said he sees new technology allowing cars to
manage the information they receive from
this type of system.
"We're not going to see a car drive by itself
in the next 10 years," Kantowitz said. "In
Europe, researchers are putting speed gover-
nors in engines that slow down the car when it
is going too fast."
But this type of control doesn't work with
Americans, he added. Instead, he said Ameri-
can cars may see systems that turn off distrac-
tions, like cell phones and the radio, when
driving in hazardous situations.
"We want to make driving safer and more
convenient for the American population",
Kantowitz said.
The system, which is supported by a $10
million contract from the Federal Highway
Administration, should be installed and tested
in 11 test vehicles in about two years, Ervin
said. The vehicles will most likely be passen-
ger vehicles and will be driven by volunteer
Michigan residents.
The TRI is also looking at the capabilities
and limitations caused by human factors on
driving and ways to improve safety, thanks to
a $16 million contract with the FHA.
DAVID ROCHKIND/Daily
University Traffic Research Institute engineer Bob Ervin checks for possible obstacles in his rearview
mirror. He and other University researchers are developjng a crash warning system for drivers.
warning to always be perceived as credible,"
Ervin said. He added that developers were
concerned the audible signal may become a
nuisance to driver's with a tendency to flirt
with the shoulder.
"If the roadside has potential hazards, the
system will warn the driver a little earlier. If
the situation is more benign, like roads
through open farm land, then the system will
let them go a little deeper on the shoulder,
Ervin said.
"We want the warning to always be per-
ceived as credible," he added.
Drivers will be warned when they are dri-
ving too fast around curves or when outdoor
temperatures drop below freezing, Ervin said.
Both of these situations reduce the amount of
friction between the tires and heighten the
Masquerade to raise
awareness and funds
for HIV/AIDS center
By Kara Wenzel
Daily Staff Reporter
The Michigan Masquerade,
which sponsors and organizers say
will be the "best ball of the fall," is
taking place tomorrow evening at
William Monroe Trotter House.
The Masquerade, a fancy cos-
tume ball, is a charity event
planned to raise money for the
HIV/AIDS Resource Center in
Ypsilanti. The.
event was planned Miciig ]
to take place on
World AIDS Day, Tmr",q
a day designated W m MC
in 1988 to bring
messages of hope
and understandingD_0,
about the AIDS
epidemic to the A preceedsi
entire globe. Resource Cer
"We planned
this event to raise
awareness about the continual
impact HIV and AIDS is having on
our society, and that includes men,
women and people of color ... and
also to raise money for a worthy
cause such as HARC," said event
planner Ken Stewart, a School of
Public Health student.
Stewart thought up the masquer-
ade idea as an alternative to the
United Way for members of the
University community to donate to
charity. The University's connec-
tion with the United Way has come
under criticism because it is an
umbrella group that supports the
Boy Scouts of America, a group
that prevents homosexuals and
atheists from being members.
The Masquerade, which starts at
9 p.m. and runs until 1 a.m., will
feature a reception with music and
refreshments, a silent auction, gam-
bling for charity and dancing.
Stewart said the
[asquerade items for the
silent auction
m, .;, x include a
Tnu roundtrip ticket
for one to a
skts, $ f". spring break des-
'', $7 tination, two tick-
ets to the annual
Michigan-Michi-
°r f s gan State hockey
game, CD bun-
dles, T-shirts, gift
certificates and gift baskets.
Tickets to the event are available
in advance until tonight at the
Michigan Union Ticket Office for
$5, and a limited number of tickets
will be available at the door for $7.
"Costumes are optional, so any-
body with a ticket won't be turned
away," Stewart said.
Stewart urges attendees to come
with "a fistful of dollars and plan
to have fun."
THE CALENDAR
What's happening in Ann Arbor this weekend
FRIDAY
St. Nicholas Light Dis-
play; Annual indoor-out-
door light spectacular
featuring more than
three million lights,
their research in Mexi-
co, Noon - 1:30 p.m.,
Room 2752, School of
Social Work
SATURDAY
Havdalah and Rock 'n'
a.m. - Noon, Kiwanis Club
of Ann Arbor, 200 South
First Street
SUNDAY
israeli Dancing; Join Tom
SERVICES
Campus Information
Centers, 764-INFO,
info@umich.edu, or
www. umich. edu/-info
Northwalk, 763-WALK.
a 0-e - - eGv e.